Six Months
by Hakurei Ryuu
Summary: Wincing slightly, I tear the photo right down the middle, trying to be careful and make the line straight. However, despite my caution, there are ragged and torn edges on either side of the divide. Kind of symbolic, actually. oneshot.


Not entirely sure where this came from. When I started typing it, it didn't turn out _exactly_ as expected, but I still like it. Not many people have thought much about this moment in Yugioh canon. Mostly based on the manga.

**Disclaimer:** Do not own.

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I hear heavy footsteps coming down the hall, and I know they're coming for me. Six months. They waited six months until they decided Seto wasn't worth anything to them anymore. It doesn't surprise me though, what with what I know about them, and who they're working for. The only thing that shocks me is that they waited this long - I fully expected them to turn on us within weeks.

The maid helps me bar the door with a dresser and a few chairs. All the other servants fled when they saw who was coming. She is the only one left, the only one I trust anymore. I had left the papers with her. Now there is only one thing left to do.

Seto sits in his wheelchair, completely oblivious to the world around him. His eyes are open sometimes, but I know he's not conscious at all. He's checked out by doctors every day, and physical therapists come by twice a day and work his arms and legs, to make sure the muscles don't atrophy. But it's been six months, and I'm beginning to wonder if there's any point anymore.

I'm still not entirely sure what Yugi did to him, but he said it would make him better. He said he took away the part of him that did such terrible things, and that Seto was rebuilding his heart inside himself. What he didn't say was how long that would take.

_Oh, big brother_, I think sadly. _You know I'll wait forever if I have to, but..._

The thugs outside begin pounding on the blockaded door. The maid squeaks fearfully, and I tell her to hide in one of the closets until the coast is clear. She hesitates, but obeys. She knows there is nothing more she can do to help me.

I wait until the closet door is shut tightly, and then reach into my front pocket. Inside is a photograph, something I prize more than anything else. Wincing slightly, I tear it right down the middle, trying to be careful and make the line straight. However, despite my caution, there are ragged and torn edges on either side of the divide. Kind of symbolic, actually. I probably should've used sissors, but there aren't any in this room, and I can't exactly go looking for a pair. Oh well. Now the two halves fit together like puzzle pieces. That's symbolic too.

Puzzle pieces. Once again, I flash back to Yugi. _Your brother is reassembling his shattered heart in the darkness. He will be back, Mokuba. I promise you._

I want so badly to believe him, but...

I shake my head. Until Seto wakes up - I try to keep the _if_ out of my thoughts - it's my job to keep him and his company safe. And I know they won't hurt him, at least not yet. Even comatose, Seto Kaiba is a public face, and his disappearance wouldn't go unnoticed. Besides, they have no use for him. It's me they're after, me and the information I carry.

The pounding increases, and I know there isn't much time left. With some difficulty, I carefully glue the photo halves into the twin lockets I had ordered made some weeks ago. One goes around my own neck, and the other I place reverently around Seto's. Maybe, if he wakes up while I'm gone, he'll know what happened. Maybe he'll come and find me.

Or maybe he won't even care. I have no way of knowing. Since Gozoburo died, he'd been... strange. It still hurts me inside, some of the things he's said. All I ever wanted was his approval, to make him proud of me... but I have to believe that whatever it was that Yugi did to him was working. I have to believe he still loves me.

The door bursts open. Dozens of guards in black suits stream in, and I am surrounded instantly. I guess they're not taking any chances. I put up a decent fight, but I know I can't win. It's mostly to keep them from noticing the maid in the closet. And, just like I suspected, no one pays any attention to the half-dead teenager sitting impassively in a wheelchair in the corner.

My hands are tied benind my back, and a hood is placed over my head. I am shoved roughly into the backseat of a car. I don't know where they're taking me, but I know they'll never find what they're looking for. You'll see, big brother. If it costs me my life, I will protect you, just like you used to protect me. I can do it. I'll take down everyone who betrayed us.

It's been six months, and I'm off to do what no child should have to do.

Wait for me, Seto. I'll be back soon.

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Win? Fail? Divide by zero? Review and tell me what you think.


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